Germany

Germany unsettled at lack of visibility

GERMANY: The German wind industry has called for visibility of auction schedules, and criticised permitting procedures becoming "more protracted".

A total of 1,626MW was installed in Germany in the first six months of the year (pic credit: Petra Klawikowski)

In total, 497 onshore turbines with a combined capacity of 1,626MW were installed between 1 January and 30 June in Germany — 28.7% less than the capacity installed in the same period in 2017 — according to WindEurope.

Offshore, 62 turbines with a combined capacity of 430MW were added in the first half of the year, but these are not yet grid-connected.

The German wind energy association (BWE) and engineering body VDMA Power Systems stated this decline in installations was expected, but warned reforms needed to be made in order to meet renewable energy targets.

The two groups stated this imbalance was "visible in the order backlogs and the short-term growth outlook".

Between 3GW and 3.5GW new capacity was forecast for 2018 — down from an annual average of 4.6GW between 2014 and 2017.

Herman Albers, the BWE’s president argued clarity was needed on auction schedules in the country, and the process of approving permits — a requirement for participation in tenders — was becoming "more protracted".

He also called for a decision to be made on whether to continue operating up-to-16GW of turbines that may need repowering by 2025.

The possibility of these projects coming offline would also need to be considered if Germany’s new coalition government is to meet its goal of sourcing 65% of its electricity from renewables by 2030, Albers said.

Offshore

Meanwhile, Germany’s cumulative offshore capacity has remained the same at 5,387MW, according to the latest data from Deutsche WindGuard.

However, the analysts added they expect Germany to meet its target under the Energy Industry Act of installing 7.7GW offshore by 2020.